A woman travelling alone was ‘shocked’ when a hostel expected her to share a double bed with a male guest she had never met before.
The Australian arrived at her accommodation late in the evening and was looking forward to sleeping in her single bed in a mixed dormitory for a good night’s sleep.
But she got an “awkward” surprise when the hostel instead offered her half of a double bed already occupied by a male guest – and her own duvet cover.
The young woman shared the awkward scenario with an online travel group and asked them if shared beds are common in hostels.
“Question, has anyone ever been offered a shared bed in a hostel? I’m used to mixed dorms, but I’m literally sharing a bed with a guy I don’t know,” she asked.
“We both have our own duvet covers, but we sleep in the same bed. You can see that he feels just as uncomfortable about it as I do.”
When we asked if there was a possibility to change rooms, the hostel said that there were no other rooms available, so the only woman was left with the ‘wild’ sleeping arrangement.
“What should I do? It’s after 11pm so there’s not much I can do right now, but would I be crazy to try to find another place to stay tomorrow night?” she asked.
A solo woman traveler was shocked when her hostel expected her to share a double bed with a strange male guest
People unanimously agreed that the hostel had made a ‘wrong’ move, which they were certain was the result of a booking error.
They thought it was ‘madness’ that they were expected to share a double bed with a stranger, especially if the other person was of the opposite sex.
“A shared bed? With a man? Period, unacceptable. I wouldn’t even feel comfortable sharing the same sleeping space with a man, they owe you a refund,” said one woman.
“Suppose he tried something (I’m not saying he would), but how can they think it’s okay for two strangers to share a bed, let alone a man and a woman,” another woman agreed.
“I would leave as soon as possible and report the hostel,” said a third woman.
Others thought the uneasy arrangement would only be acceptable if both parties agreed to it in advance.
A Perth hostel manager said bedding was absolutely “weird” and only done at the specific request of a guest.
Unfortunately, some travelers have experienced the same embarrassing situation.
‘This seems to be a thing in some hostels, it’s so weird and I don’t get it. I always look at pictures of beds these days to avoid this,’ said one.
One woman thought that the fact that the male bed partner felt “uncomfortable” was a sign that the only woman was safe for the night.
“Since he’s respectful, I would just go to sleep and wait until morning… but I would definitely complain about it because he could have been a weirdo!” she said.
Another woman couldn’t believe the unlikely situation had happened to someone in real life: ‘That’s insane! It sounds like the beginning of one of those cheesy romance movies.’